The easy answer would be to just hide the seam in the back or somewhere else out of notice, but let's say that this option won't work for you, or that you're making a long, spindly striped piece where the seam can't really be hidden. Luckily, I have another solution for you: the crocheted jogless stripe!

Method #1: Jogless Stripes when working in a single crochet spiral

Normally, making stripes when working in a spiral leaves a rather messy line where the color changes happen:

Try this technique to make your color transitions a little bit cleaner:

Step 1: At the start of a round which will be in a new color, pull up a loop as if to make a single crochet in the old color, but don't pull through the second loop to complete the stitch-- you should have two loops on your hook

Step 2: Complete the single crochet by pulling through a loop of the *new* color. You have just made a single crochet which is half the old color and half the new color.

Step 3: Make 1 slip stitch in the new color

Step 4: Continue the round as usual.

See how this method compares to the normal way of changing colors:

Method #2: Jogless Stripes when working in single crochet rounds

I feel that working in rounds instead of in a spiral offers slightly better-looking stripes, but there is still a noticeable seam at the color changes:

Step 1: Stop at the end of a round, right before closing the round with a slip stitch, when you are going to be switching to a new color in the next round.

Step 2: Take the hook *out* of the current loop, and insert the hook in the space where you would normally make the slip stitch to close the round.

Step 3: Take the loop that you pulled off of the hook in Step 2, and pull it back onto the hook, such that the loop is now behind the fabric. (You might want to tug on the yarn a bit if this loop has become loose)

Step 4: Make your slip stitch using the new color. Continue on to the next round using the new color.

I have spent multipul HOURS looking for a way to do this and your post is so clear it tells me exactly what to do in the spiral and all the YouTube videos are driving me insane
Thank you so much: my stripes are turning out not like a knotty mess of yarn tails :) must bookmark this page

I have been crocheting for years, but just found your site. Jogless tutorial is awesome. My enthusiasm for this method knows no bounds, and I begin to seek out striped projects instead of avoiding them. Kudos to you! - Sarah

I'm new to crochet. In your color changes Method 2, step 3, you put the loop back on the hook. Its not clear what becomes of that loop. What happens to that loop when you pull the new color through? Thank you :o)

Thank you sooooo much for sharing this amazing tutorial! I've always been very disturbed by the uneven change in colours of my amigurumis. With this amazing crochet method, I'm going to try to crochet more stripes creations. THANK YOU SO MUCH! Your tutorials are very clear and detailed. Love, Rachel H

When working in rounds, after completeing the slip stitch do we do the "ch 1, sc 1 in same" normally? Like insert the hook through the slip stitch and the first sc from the previous round?
I tried it and it works out really nicely so I assume that's what you meant . . .

In the example photo, I ch 1 and continue sc'ing around-- I generally only start the round with a "sc 1 in same" if I intend to increase, but I know that some people prefer the look of the seam with a "sc 1 in same" at the start of each round. It's just a matter of preference.

Thanks so much for sharing these tips! I've been trying to figure this out for ages, and always ended up just having to hide the seam. I found you via Pinterest, and linked to this page on my blog this morning. :) http://bit.ly/N9O88u

... I'm used to yarning the new colour into the last stitch of the previous round, does this method yarn into the first stich of the new round? From earlier comments, it sounds like
Instead of 11SC, 1 SC Colour Change, start new round, you do end round on previous colour, 1SC Colour change, Sl St, 10SC ...

Round n+1: working with color 1, sc 12
Round n+2: working with color 1, make first half of sc, working with color 2, make second half of same sc, sl st 1, sc 10
Round n+3: working with color 2, sc 12

(Although, really, if you're working in a spiral, doing the color change at the start or the end of the round doesn't really make the transition appear any more or less smooth. It just shifts where the transition occurs to the left or right.)

This didn't work for me. I can still see the seam from my color changes. I'm unclear about the slip stitch for crocheting in continuous rounds in these directions. Is the slip stitch made in the next stitch or the previous stitch? Do you single crochet in the slip stitch in the next round? I feel like the only thing that is different in these directions is the slip stitch. The rest of the color change takes place as I've always done it. I'm just confused by all of the wonderfully positive comments about this method and my inability to achieve those results. Hoping I can find some suggestions to get me on the right track!

I'll have to have this page open on my lap top when I try to do this. I've noticed the stepping effect and have wondered if I've gone wrong somewhere. Glad to know it's not me, but there is a way I can lessen the effect.
Thank you very much!

I wanted to add to the many thanks already out here. I'm a quasi-begginer and a was going batty w/ that icky diagonal 'seam' appearing when I switch colors. Of course no one ever photographs the work showing the ugly seam and I've been left scratching my head trying to figure out if I was doing something wrong. So a HUGE thank you for sharing your knowledge to the rest of the crocheting world in such a fantastically clear and detailed manner!

This is my VERY FIRST reply to ANY post . Just to let you know how significant this tutorial has been to me . I have been strugguling for years with this problem ( i crochet hats in rounds ) I looked all over the net and through many books for a solution and never found one( i didn't even know it had a name ). Now I know what to call it and how to solve it .Thank you , Thank you , Thank you!!!!! a million times.

In your method #1 in step 3 you state: Make 1 slip stitch in the new color -- is the slip stitch to be placed in the next stitch? In step 4 you state: continue the round as usual -- do you start single crocheting in the same stitch as the slip stitch or in the next stitch? Sorry, I got lost here. The changing of the colors is how I always change them otherwise. Thank you for your help. Darlene